Everyone needs a terrific vanilla ice cream recipe in their repertoire, and here it is. Keeping a tub of homemade vanilla ice cream in my freezer is standard policy, since I can't think of any dessert that isn't made better with a scoop of vanilla ice cream melting alongside.

Ingredients

1 cup (250 ml) whole milk

3/4 cup (150 g) sugar

2 cups (500 ml) heavy cream

Pinch of salt

1 vanilla bean, split in half lengthwise

6 large egg yolks

3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preparation

Warm the milk, sugar, 1 cup (250 ml) of the cream, and salt in a medium saucepan. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the warm milk and add the bean as well. Cover, remove from the heat, and let steep at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Pour the remaining 1 cup (250 ml) cream into a large bowl and set a mesh strainer on top. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.

Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the cream. Put the vanilla bean into the custard, add the vanilla extract, and stir until cool over an ice bath.

Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator. When ready to churn, remove the vanilla bean, rinsing and reserving it for another use, and then freeze the mixture in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

David Lebovitz is a pastry chef, author, and creator of the award-winning food blog www.davidlebovitz.com. Trained as a baker in France and Belgium, he worked for twelve years in the pastry department at the famed Chez Panisse. Room for Dessert, his first book, was an International Association of Culinary Professionals award finalist. He is also the author of Ready for Dessert, The Sweet Life in Paris, a 2010 IACP Award finalist in the Literary Food Writing category, and The Perfect Scoop. David writes, blogs, and leads culinary tours from his home in Paris, France.

Menus & Tags

This Recipe is Featured In:

Tags:

Recent Review

This is the definitive vanilla ice cream recipe. Period.
The point needs to be made that there is a reason that there are two forms of vanilla in this - the two different forms together create a special flavor profile that Mr. Lebovitz discusses in his book and which is truly special. Despite what you might think, even though the ice cream base tastes great before you add the vanilla extract, it is even better with it, and not at all overpowering. I use Charles H. Baldwin & Sons vanilla for this, as I find it to be a superior vanilla for non-baked applications like this.
Also: When making custards like this, the way to ensure you get the "right" egg flavor is to NOT undercook the eggs! If you undercook the eggs, the ice cream will have a very nasty flavor. You can do this by temperature (180-183 degrees), or by smell. At the proper temperature, the eggs will begin to smell "cooked" and delicious (like a cookie). Once you hit this smell point, you can continue heating for another minute or two.
In my custard ice cream making experience - where I have learned a lot from Mr. Lebovitz - I have found that undercooking generally results in a more flawed product than overcooking.